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Letter Head: Jack O'Connell, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Phone number 916-319-0800

Back to Year 2006 - Letters

January 24, 2006

Dear County and District Superintendents:

Graduation Requirements for Students in California
Who Were Displaced by Hurricane Katrina

The purpose of this update is to clarify graduation requirements for students displaced from their home schools by Hurricane Katrina and are now attending school in California.

I want to thank everyone in California's education community for welcoming these students into our schools. I also would like to share that more than 500 California schools raised $864,054.15 in the California Kids Care program to benefit victims of Hurricane Katrina.

As of the end of November, districts have reported 1,150 students from the affected Gulf States are attending California schools. More than 300 of those students are in high school. We have received questions from a number of districts regarding graduation requirements for those who are juniors or seniors. Because these students spent the majority of their kindergarten through grade twelve career attending school in Louisiana, they have the option to qualify for a diploma issued by the State of Louisiana or by the State of California. It is the student's choice which diploma they wish to receive. The following information is intended to clarify the requirements students displaced by Hurricane Katrina must meet to receive a high school diploma from either state.

California Diploma

Any student in California, including students who have been displaced by Hurricane Katrina, must pass the California High School Exit Examination and meet all other California state and local graduation requirements in order to earn a California diploma.

Louisiana Diploma

The Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education recently voted to allow students who relocated to other states due to the hurricanes to receive Louisiana diplomas during the 2005-06 and the 2006-07 school years. The following steps need to be taken to assist these students in obtaining a Louisiana diploma:

  • Schools distribute to displaced Louisiana juniors and seniors, the flyer found on the Louisiana Department of Education (LDE) Web site at Louisiana Seniors, Graduation Information
    [http://www.louisianaschools.net/lde/uploads/8265.pdf]     (Outside Source; PDF; 186KB; 1p.).
  • School counselors notify the LDE of the student's decision by supplying the student's name, social security number or date of birth, and former school on an electronic form found on the LDE Web site at Louisiana Department of Education [http://www.louisianaschools.net/lde/index.html] (Outside Source).
  • After the student completes the necessary courses, the counselor sends the transcript to the student's home district. Instructions for submitting the transcript electronically will soon be available on the LDE Web site at Louisiana Department of Education [http://www.louisianaschools.net/lde/index.html] (Outside Source).
  • The home district will evaluate the transcript and send the diploma to the student's current school.
  • Students who need to take the Louisiana Graduation Exit Examination (GEE) will be provided three opportunities this spring to take the GEE online. A list of frequently asked questions regarding the GEE can be found on the LDE Web site at Frequently Asked Questions: Graduation Exit Exam (GEE) Online [http://www.louisianaschools.net/lde/uploads/8291.pdf] (Outside Source; PDF; 23KB; 5pp.).

Students in Louisiana must earn 23 "Carnegie Units" or course credits and pass the GEE in order to earn a diploma. Students take the mathematics and English-language arts portions of the GEE in tenth grade and the science and social studies sections in eleventh grade. Students must pass mathematics, English-language arts, and either science or social studies to pass the GEE.

Additional information on the Distance Diploma Program is available on the LDE Web site at Distance Diploma [http://www.louisianaschools.net/distdiploma/dd_home.aspx] (Outside Source) or by calling the LDE toll-free hotline at 877-453-2721.

While the devastation wrought by Hurricane Katrina no longer leads the news, the impact of this disaster continues to be a harsh and daily reality for those who lost their homes and left behind friends and family. Helping students navigate the process to obtain a high school diploma is an important way the California education community can help them rebuild their lives. Please make every effort to ensure that this information is transmitted to all eligible students and high school counselors.

If you have additional questions that have not been addressed in this update please contact the California Department of Education Communications Office by e-mail at communications@cde.ca.gov.

Sincerely,

 

Jack O'Connell

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